Man pulls out knife during street fight

NORTH RIDGEVILLE – Two stabbing victims are in fair condition, and a third is recovering from a deep stomach wound after an early-morning brawl last weekend.

Jeffrey Gadke, 40, of North Ridgeville, was charged with three counts of felonious assault after allegedly pulling a knife on a group of men.

He was being held in the county jail on a $45,000 bond.

Police were called at 2:42 a.m. Sunday to the 5800 block of Paula Boulevard, where a large group of men was fighting in the street, according to North Ridgeville police Lt. Barry Accorti.

Several fled when police approached, leaving three bleeding men behind, Accorti said.Michael Rich, 34, of North Ridgeville, suffered a 4-inch gash across his shin. Michael McCasson, 29, of Cleveland, had his thumb cut nearly off, and Dameon Dempsey, 33, of North Ridgeville, was stabbed in the stomach.

Rich said all three stabbing victims were treated and released from local hospitals Sunday morning, but doctors could not stitch Dempsey`s wound and had left it open.

Dempsey returned to the hospital Tuesday due to complications from the wound, he said.

“(Gadke) went ballistic. He just started swinging. I think he really wanted to kill someone,” said Rich, who added that five other people involved in the fight ran off when Gadke pulled the knife. “I think they were just as scared as we were of what he would do.”

Accorti said the fight started outside Speedway, where Gadke and his friends had stopped to buy alcohol.The men became rowdy and started harassing several women about where they could find a party, Rich said, and that`s when Gadke pulled a knife.

Gadke has prior convictions for carrying a concealed weapon, disorderly conduct, DUI, failing to stop after an accident, drug paraphernalia, and possession of marijuana, according to police.